The BRAC, the world’s largest NGO, has trained up the country’s around 4 lakhs of youth in the non-agriculture sector in the last eight years, helping them get decent employment along with self initiatives.
BRAC officials on Tuesday revealed this information at a programme marking the ‘World Youth Skills Day’ at the BRAC Centre in Dhaka.
The programme comprised of an exhibition of its skill development initiatives, launching of a publication, and a series of panel discussions.
Faruque Hossain, chairman of the National Skills Development Authority was present as the chief guest at the panel discussion styled ‘SDG-8: Youth, skills and employment.’
Tapan Kumar Ghosh, chairman of the Bureau of Non-formal Education, and KAM Morshed, director of BRAC also took part in the discussion among others.
In the programme it was said that the BRAC Skills Development Programme was currently working with focus on three areas, skill training, systems change with the government and industry partnerships, and community engagement.
“Currently we are operating eight projects focusing on the communities living in the cities, municipalities and Rohingyas and host community in Cox’s Bazar,” BRAC officials said.
The panel discussants said the young people in Bangladesh were now facing a precarious future, despite living one of the fastest growing economies in world.
One-third of Bangladesh population is 10-24 years old, and 2 million young people enter the job market every year without having proper skills training, their inadequate knowledge at work restrict them to go further, they said.
In Bangladesh, around 85 percent of jobs were now in the informal labour market. These are not only jobs in construction, garments, and domestic work, but also graphic designers, beauticians, and many other sectors.
The wage of these labourers depend on how effectively they can negotiate salary, learn new skills, and develop relationships with employers, they added.
According to Bangladesh Labour Force Survey, more than 90 percent of working woman are in informal employment, and more than one half of women in the informal economy have little or do education.
The speakers also said Bangladesh has made significant economic strides in the last two decades, but in order to continue its rapid growth, the country must invest in new solutions for one of its fastest-growing workforce, mainly the women.
